Following Governor Pritzker’s State of the State Address, Representative Bradley J. Fritts (R-Dixon) released the following statement:
“I completely support the effort to expand funding offered to hospitals. Healthcare is critical, and many rural areas suffer the effects of minimal funding. Just last week, St. Margaret’s Hospital in Peru closed its doors. Now, some women in my district have to travel over an hour to reach a hospital to give birth safely. This is unacceptable, and I commend Governor Pritzker’s effort to assist the people of our state in accessing healthcare services.
“However, I am deeply concerned by the lack of economic growth discussed in his address. Our state is seeing a drastic decline in economic opportunity. Companies like Caterpillar, Citadel, and Boeing have all announced that they are leaving Illinois. People are fleeing our state, as Illinois has one of the highest rates of outward migration in the nation. Yet, there is no plan to remedy this situation.
“Governor Pritzker has proposed a 7.9% increase in state expenditures, yet our revenue is expected to fall by 2.8%. That is unsustainable and will only further burden the taxpayers in our state. This budget proposal is far from being balanced.
“I came to Springfield to work each and every day for the people of my district and my state. I am willing to work across the aisle to fix these issues and bring fiscal responsibility back to our state.”